Have you ever thought about how live chat could enhance your business? How could it improve your business by ensuring better communication with your customer?

We at LiveChat Agent have been in this field for quite some time now, and almost daily, we see the benefits that a managed live chat service brings to our customers and the cost-cutting benefits that they gain from it. You don’t have to take our word for it. Plenty of independent research shows how beneficial a 27/7 managed live chat is for a business. The increase in conversions or leads is more than three times. The reduction in the number of phone calls needed is more than 50%, and the value of each purchase by the customer is shown to increase by over 10%.

But if you are a small business and are considering operating your live chat, be aware! Having a live chat widget on your website is not enough. It would be best if you had it fully staffed. Having a live chat service and not staffing it will be a big negative for how your customers perceive you. We have tried to collate some of the critical points that can make or break your business if you have live chat services.

1. Never keep the customer waiting: Ensure your live chat is handled full time. Customers have come to expect an immediate response to their queries. They will not accept being made to wait for an agent to respond to them. And the irritated customer can mean the difference between that perfect rating you have been maintaining to a less than ideal one. The time scale might be counted in seconds here. So, ensure your staff are adequately trained, and you do not have any gaps in the coverage provided on your website live chat.

2. Treat your website visitors right: No matter what their needs, your customers deserve to be treated politely at all times. It does not matter if they are looking to add a product to their product or looking for some help. Just as you treat your in-store customers politely and smilingly, you need to greet your live chat customers pleasantly and well. No matter what their issue is, they deserve your best service.

3. Get their basic details and establish a rapport: Never be too aggressive with your customers. You should be polished and know how to get the necessary information without the customer feeling like they are asked to provide too many details. Start simply by asking for their name, finding out what their need is, what they are expecting from you in terms of help, and building a rapport while providing them with the service needed. Each customer is different, and similarly, every chat will be different. You need to be on your toes to get the required details without the customer feeling uncomfortable. And the uncomfortable customer is a customer who will be looking at another place they can get their work done or purchase done. Believe us, there are plenty of alternatives in the current scenario.

4. You are there to help: When chatting with the customer, never forget that you are there to help the customer with either a purchase or an issue preventing them from purchasing or any other topic. This means that you should be focused not only on answering them but also on answering them correctly at all times. If you are not aware of something or need to check on something, please communicate that to the customer so that they feel that they are being taken care of. If you can, get back to them immediately. Or get their contact details and get back to them on their preferred mode of contact with the solutions or answers as soon as possible.

5. Closing the chat: If you have been successful in answering all their queries or have assured them that you have raised the issue with your team and will be getting back to them with a solution in a certain period of time. It is now time for a graceful exit. You have to leave the chat on a positive note. Thank the customer and make sure that they have a resolution or an assurance of a time-bound resolution. Confirm they have no more questions or issues that need to be addressed. If you have a rating system for the chat services, ask them if they mind answering the questionnaire to rate your performance. You can even ask them to share your business on social media if they feel that you provided them with the best possible care.

How do you feel about a self-managed live chat now?   

A fully managed live chat is a 24/7 commitment for 365 days a year. You cannot compromise on live chat services as the customers now expect live chat services to be 24/7. You might need to look at hiring people just for taking care of the live chat. This would go against your reasons for having a live chat service with additional expenses, time-consuming scheduling, etc. At LiveChat Agent, we offer fully managed live chat services to our clients at affordable rates tailor-made to your needs. Our fully trained chat agents have been instrumental is hitting the ground running with all our client and we will be able to cover your website too without any issues in the shortest period of time.  Get in touch with us on our website or give Tracey a call at.

Also Read: Industries That Can Benefit The From Live Chat

• Author Details

Author Details

Tracey Horey

CEO of Live Chat Agent

Tracey Horey is a 20 year veteran of the Automotive industry and has been writing Automotive content and helping Dealerships optimise their digital space for over 15 years. Her experience working with various sized dealerships and her passion for exploring and understanding new tools for the auto industry has given her an in depth understanding of the challenges all dealerships face in a changing landscape.

accounts@livechatagent.com.au

1800 332 428